About 17 years and 8 months ago, something happened that changed my life.

The exact date was January 26, 2003 which happened to be Superbowl Sunday.

No, it was not the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeating the Oakland Raiders 48-21 in Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

It was the day that I first met my wife, Ali, as she was a visitor at the church I attended.

I oversaw the parking lot greeting ministry, so when she first stepped out of the car, I made sure she received a warm greeting.

After talking with her I discovered that her mother used to be my son Hudson's, preschool teacher.

When I asked how her mom was doing, Ali mentioned that she had been bed-ridden for a couple of weeks due to back pain.

I made a house call that day and on Superbowl Sunday a relationship began with my wife and her family.

Mom started coming to the office and Ali started coming to church.

Mom's back pain eventually went away, but I kept hanging around.

Every week I got to know Ali a little better and as our friendship grew, I knew it was time to take it to the next level.

I decided to ask Ali out on an official date so on May 31, 2003 I borrowed my friends convertible, picked her up at the house and off we went for a walk at the beach.

We stopped at the lifeguard station just left of the bathrooms at Burnout (Dolphin Park) in Redondo Beach and as we sat on the sand, I started telling her all the things that I loved about her.

When I was done telling her how I felt, I pulled out this velvety fancy box that had an engagement ring in it and asked her if she would marry me.

I think her jaw hit the sand.

She definitely was NOT expecting me to ask her to marry her since it was our first date, in fact, she didn't respond with a 'yes', her first response was, 'Does my dad know about this???'

I spoke with her mom and dad a day or two before our date so when I told her this, she said 'yes'.

Two and a half months later on August 15, 2003, we got married at the PV Country Club.

Sometimes, life can be filled with unexpected surprises.

You must be ready on any given day for anything that comes your way.

The healthier you are physically, mentally, spiritually, relationally, etc. the better you will be able to handle both the good and difficult times that come your way.

My wife was not expecting to marry a widower with three small kids ages 7, 4 and 3, but she was healthy & strong enough to handle the challenges she has faced over the past 17 plus years.

None of us know the challenges we may be facing in the upcoming days, but I can tell you the healthier and stronger you are today, the better chances you have of handling anything that comes your way tomorrow.

Have a GREAT Thursday!

Dr. Derek 'most blessed man in the world' Taylor

310-891-0102

www.drderektaylor.com

PS- Today is my wife's birthday. I plan on celebrating it with her and the kids by taking the day off work. I think I'll take her to the same place where I saw her jaw almost hit the sand, right next to the lifeguard station, only this time we'll have 5 youngens' with us.